CHURCH CONSTITUTION.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume VIII, Issue 699, 14 April 1852, Page 2

CHURCH CONSTITUTION.

A meeting of the members of the Church of England was held at St. Paul’s School Room, on Wednesday evening, the 7th inst. The meeting having been opened by the Rev. E. Wheeler with prayer, on the motion of Mr. St. Hill, seconded by the Rev. E. Wheeler, Mr. D. Wakefield took the chair. The chairman having opened the business of the meeting Archdeacon Hadfield said he wished, if he should not be considered out of order, to propose an amendment to a resolution, passed at a former meeting, to the effect that a committee be appointed to petition the Imperial Parliament to grant to the members of the Church of England in New Zealand the necessary powers to manage their own internal affairs. His amendment was, that they should apply to the Colonial Legislature for such powers as they could grant, and if these were found to be insufficient, they could then apply to the Imperial Parliament for such further powers as might be deemed necessary. He could not see why they should not obtain all they wanted from the Colonial Legislature; they required no more than any Banking Company or other society who applied for legal powers to carry out the objects for which they were associated; il they waited for an enactment by the Imperial Parliament he feared that a long time would elapse before they obtained it.

Mr. Raymond felt great diffidence in differing from the Archdeacon as to the expediency of applying for any powers to the Colonial Legislature. No one could be more anxious than himself to see some form of Church Government established in New Zealand, immediately if possible, but he very much feared if they proceeded under any other powers than those given by the Imperial Parliament, they would be setting up a Church of their own, and not a branch of the Mother Church. He should prefer submitting to any delay rather than run such a risk, if their application toParhament was slighted they might then seek for powers elsewhere, but he felt strongly opposed to any alteration being made in the resolution.

Archdeacon Hadfield did not see much weight in Mr. Raymond’s objection. In the couse he had suggested it was not intended to interfere with anything that would cause a falling off from the Church of England. The English Ecclesiastical law was not applicable to New Zealand, and they had therefore nothing to do with it but the Ecclesiastical law was in many ways mixed up with the common law, and so far as it affected them, he imagined a Colonial Legislature could easily provide a remedy. Any act obtained from the Local Legislature would not, of course, be brought into operation until it received the Royal assent, and he must confess he could allow but little weight to the objection made by the previous speaker. rf 1 ' soinc further discussion in which Mr. Raymond, Mr. Moore and Mr. Allen took part, Archdeacon Hadfield said he had no desire that the petition to Parliament should be abandoned, on the contrary he thought this petition would be strengthened by the recommendation of

the Local Legislature ; they might in the mean time obtain from the Local Legis- ] lature such powers as they could grant, of the extent of which he was not aware, but which he had no doubt would be sufficient to enable them to set matters in train with but little further delay. Sir George Grey said that having recently heard the matter now under discussion talked over in the other settlements, he believed he was correct in stating that the view generally taken in the other settlements was that expressed by the Archdeacon ; at the same time he owned that he was unprepared to express an opinion how far the power of the local legislature extended in the matter. It was a new and very interesting as well as important subject, and he thought it behoved them to give it all the consideration in their power. He did think, therefore, that it was worth a trial; at any rate it would do no harm to obtain the recommendation of our colonial Legislature to the Imperial Parliament to grant the powers required.

Mr. Raymond said that after the full and satisfactory discussion that had taken place, he would readily withdraw any opposition to the amendment, as he understood an Act of Parliament would, under any circumstances, be applied for. It was then moved by Archdeacon Hadfield, seconded by Mr. St. Hill, that the following be added to the original resolution — That the Committee about to be elected do likewise prepare a memorial to the local Legislature to pass an Act upon the same subject. The following gentlemen were elected a Committee for the above purpose, with power to add to their number— Mr. D. Wakefield, Mr. Kelhatn, Mr. Moore, Mr. Brandon, Mr. St. Hill, Capt. Rhodes, Mr. Barraud, Mr. Hickson, Mr. Allen, Mr. Carkeek, Mr. Mills, Mr. Raymond. It was also resolved that the Committee be instructed to add to their number the officiating clergymen of Wellington. Moved by Mr. St. Hill, seconded by Lieutenant Colonel M‘Cleverty— That the Committee be instructed to communicate with the other settlements upon the subject of the Church Constitution now under consideration. Sir George Grey thought it would be well if the names of some of the middling and humbler classes of the community were added to the list of the proposed Committee. Amongst such persons there were many zealous and seriously disposed men — and he was very desirous that in New Zealand the error should be avoided which had been fallen into in America, of making the Branch of the Church of England there established the Church of the rich. He could not but think that great good would result from enlisting the sympathies of all classes in the cause which they had in hand. Mr. Allen was very glad to hear such sentiments from his Excellency, and regretted that these views had not always been acted on. Archdeacon Hadfield then addressed the meeting on the subject of the franchise, and adverted to a report of Mr. Godley’s speech at a meeting at Christchurch, which he had that day read in the New Zealand Spectator. He had a high opinion of Mr. Godley, yet he could not but think that gentleman was too stringent in the terms laid down by him, when he proposed that none but communicants should exercise the franchise. He differed materially with him on that subject. Mr. Godley appeared to think that the subject had not been properly considered by those persons at Wellington who had taken the lead in this matter, but he was in error on that point, for he (the Archdeacon) knew that the opinions of the Bishop of New Zealand, and those of Mr. Martin coincided with his own with reference to this subject. It was his opinion that all were members of the Christian Church by baptism, and he thought that, however desirable it might be to have a high standard before them, it would not be found prudent in an infant colony to lay down a rule so stringent as that he had adverted to.

Sir George Grey said it was a mistake to suppose that the question of Church membership in New Zealand had not been carefully considered, and that for a period of nearly four years. In. considering this subject it was hardly necessary to consider what other Protestant denominations regarded as constituting membership. Their governing bodies did not consist of an Episcopal Chamber, a Chamber of Clergymen, and one of Laymen — the joint consent of all of which was necessary for the enactment of any law binding upon the whole Church. Where the governing body was thus composed of three Chambers, it did not appear that so high a standard of qualification was necessary to enable a lay member of the Church to give a vote in favor of a delegate to the Chamber of Laymen. The Church of England received into its bosom by Baptism two classes of persons, rendering them thereby members of Christ’s Church—adults and infants. Surely no adult would be thus admitted into the Church until he was qualified to give a vote in favour of a delegate to the Lay Chamber. Surely under so active a system of Church Government as was proposed, the Church itself wotdd take care that

those infants adopted into it by baptism should receive such an education as would qualify them to exercise their rights as Church Members. But if persons belonging to either of these classes were such unworthy persons as to be incapable and undeserving of exercising their privileges as Church Members, the Church itself, under the proposed system of Government, would have the power of excluding such persons from the privilege of voting—in this case punishment wculd fall only on those who deserved it; and the Church would not be driven into adopting a system of I qualification for Church membership, which might lead to many abuses, and must certainly open manyvery difficult questions. In America, in addition to baptism, the qualification of renting sittings in the Church was required. It was found that this to a great extent excluded the poor from the Church of England, and drove them to other denominations. This was a subject of regret to many of the wisest men connected with that Church. Here it had been proposed, in addition to baptism, to require as a qualification the payment of a small annual sum for the support of the Church. It was proposed that this sum should be so small that the poorest person in the country could pay it, and by this means, in as far as Church membership went, acquire all the privileges which the richest man could gain. No doubt it was to be hoped that every member of the Church would become a communicant; one of the very objects of the proposed system of Church Government was to raise the Church to this standard, and he (Sir George Grey) hoped that it would in time he attained to; but he confessed he felt averse to see anything like a reward or special privilege being given to persons for receiving the Communion. When, however, the proposed form of Church Government was established, the Church itself could make laws, by which, as good members of the Church, they would all be equally bound, and then no doubt the subject of the qualification requisite to constitute Church membership would be considered more fully by a large number of persons who had not yet attended to the subject. The proceedings of the meeting -were then concluded by prayer.

The children of the Church of England Sunday and Day Schools were entertained with tea and cake on the afternoon of Easter Monday in the Government grounds by Sir George and Lady Grey. The weather was rough and unfavourable, but notwithstanding this drawbrack considerably more than two hundred children were assembled, and if their countenances were any indication of their hearts, there was no lack of happiness amongst them. A considerable number of teachers were present, and also a goodly number of visitors, all of whom were most courteously received by his Excellency and Lady Grey, and when the children's feast was over all were invited in to the Government House to partake of refreshments, which had been provided. The anniversary of the Wesleyan Sunday Schools was also celebrated on Easter Monday, when the usual procession of the Schools took place at Te Arc, and the children (upwards of one hundred and twenty in number) were entertained with tea and cake in the School rooms. In the evening a public meeting of the friends and supporters of the Schools was held which was numerously attended, and collections were made in aid of the fund for defraying the expences of the Schools.